You are Behaving Like A Persecutor, Sowore’s Lawyer Tells DSS Lawyer In Court

The case brought against the Convener of a#RevolutuonNow and Publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, by the Department of State Services, DSS, took a dramatic turn Monday , as the Counsel to Sowore, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, SAN, described Counsel to the DSS, Chief Akinlolu Kehinde, SAN, as “a persecutor and not a prosecutor.”

Mr Olumide-Fusika responded after Chief Kehinde accused him of employing dilatory tactics in the matter.

Mr Olumide-Fusika took exception and narrated events in the proceedings since he took over the matter on June 22, to make his point.

The argument arose at Monday’s proceedings, when lead lawyer to Sowore, Mr Olumide-Fusika, SAN, applied for an adjournment of proceedings on the ground that the document he needed for the day had just been released to him by the court registrar few minutes before the court started sitting.

He said he applied for the documents on July 22 and was approved for him by the trial judge, Justice Mohammed Umar on July 27, but received them a few minutes before the court began sitting on August 3.

He sought an adjournment to enable him study the documents and prepare for cross examination of his next witness, who is an official of the DSS.

At this point, DSS lawyer opposed the adjournment application describing it as “dilatory tactics” to further delay proceedings in the trial, asking the judge to foreclose the defense of Sowore.

The prosecution accused the defense of trying to frustrate proceedings and urged the Judge to resist the adjournment request.

In response, Mr. Olumide-Fusika, SAN, opposed the use of “dilatory tactics” against him. He said it was an insult and called on the court to call Chief Kehinde to order.

Following the heated exchange of unpleasant words Justice Mohammed Umar, abruptly adjourned proceedings to September 28, 2026.

The DSS dragged Sowore to court after allegation that he used allegedly derogatory words against President Bola Tinubu om his Facebook page.

The legal team representing Sowore withdrew, claiming it was being intimidated by the prosecution.

It alleged that at one point, the judge asked them to kneel down in the open court.

In the absence of any lawyer, Sowore filed a motion for the judge to recuse himself from the matter, saying he has no confidence in the judge to continue to hear the matter.

After the motion was heard, the court fixed the case for June 15 for ruling.

On June 15, the court did not sit on the ground that the court was being renovated but it was gathered that the judge was bereaved, which necessitated his absence from court.

Sowore was in court on June 15 for the ruling but the court did not sit. He was supposed to be with his lawyer on June 16 to brief him and had written to the court to inform the court about his absence.

Following his absence in court on June 16, Prosecution Counsel, Chief Kehinde, told the court to send him back to prison for jumping bail.

The court granted the application and revoked his bail.

The court delivered the ruling on the application for recusal on June 22, the day Mr Olumide-Fusika came into the matter.

The court revoked Sowore’s bail after he told the court that Sowore was with him on June 16.

After the bail was revoked, an application was filed to set it aside but the prosecution prayed the court to refuse the application.

The application was moved on June 24 and it was adjourned for ruling June 30.

In his ruling, the court granted fresh bail but in the motion filed, that wasn’t what was contained.

Sowore had in his motion asked the court to reconsider the order revoking his bail. But the court ignored the request and granted fresh bail conditions.

After the ruling of the court, the defense called its first witness on July 6 but the court wasn’t ready because there was a video evidence that needed to be played but the court had no facility.

The court agreed that it wasn’t the fault of the defense team and despite that, the defense team agreed to go on with the matter that day, saying that when it’s time for the video evidence in the case, it will be adjourned to enable the court make provisions for the facility.

It was agreed that any adjournment that will be taken will be for the purpose of playing the video evidence and cross-examonation and the case was adjourned to July 13.

Parties and the court agreed that any adjournment after the July 13 hearing will not be for the following week because Mr Olumide-Fusika said he was not going to be available but despite the the agreement, the court adjourned the case to July 16.

When the court was adjourning the matter to July 16, Chief Kehinde failed to draw the attention of the court to the fact that parties had agreed that any adjourment should not be a week after that of July 13 date.

Rather than drawing the attention of the court to the fact that Mr Olumide-Fusika had said the next adjournment should be about a week after July 13 as agreed by all parties including the court, he told the court to foreclose the case of the defendant because they are wasting the time of the court.

The court, however, fixed the case for July 22.

During the July 22 trial date, a witness of the DSS, Uwem Davies, appeared in court to give evidence but failed to provide answers to questions being asked by the defense lawyer.

While giving evidence, Davies was asked by Mr Olumide-Fusika, if he wrote the letter to Sowore and he said yes, adding that, that was the only letter he signed.

Mr Olumide- Fusika said in court, “We brought out another letter written to Facebook but he said he does not know anything about it. I could not tender the letter through him, since he was not the one that signed it.

On the initial letter, Davies later said he was not the author, he was only asked to sign it.

Mr Fusika said he called the former defense lawyer and asked, if the letter was served on him by the prosecution and he said, yes.

He said he needed the letter to cross-examine the witness on it but Chief Kehinde objected.

The court agreed with the objection of the prosecution adding that the letter may have been tampered with.

He asked the prosecution to apply for the Certified True Copy of the letter from the court.

Mr Olumide-Fusika said, “We kept on sending someone to the court after submitting our application for the CTC on July 22 but they told us the court was yet to approve it. We went to the registry of the court severally, they told us the court hasn’t approved it.”

The case was later adjourned to July 28.

Following the failure of the witness to answer questions based on the document before the court, the Director of DSS, Dr Tosin Ajayi, who signed the document was supoened to appear before the court to give evidence.

Rather than come to court to testify, the AGF appeared but Mr Olumide-Fusika told him he could not appear in the matter.

He said, “Rather than for the witness to come, the AGF showed up. If I’d wanted to delay the matter, I would have insisted that the DG should come”.

As at July 28, the court had started its annual vacation and was not supposed to sit. The court sat outside its authorised time to sit.